Jason Richardson is in the final year of his contract. He came to the Sixers in the Andrew Bynum trade in the summer of 2012. He played 33 games his first season with the Sixers before a knee injury sidelined him for two-plus years.
On Feb. 20, Richardson played in a game for the first time in 763 days. Things were going well for the 34-year-old until five games ago, when he went into a shooting slump.
Heading into Wednesday's win over Detroit, Richardson had made just six of his last 37 shots, and he missed his last 16 three-point attempts.
His struggles led Richardson to Brett Brown's office for a conversation on Tuesday.
“He came to me [Tuesday] and said, ‘I want you to know that you don't have to start me. I will do whatever you want me to do,’" Brown said after Wednesday's 94-83 win. "Never did I feel like this is a favor that I am starting Jason. I think he helps the team.
“The past few games he felt like he wasn't helping the team. I have a lot of continued respect for him. For him to talk to me and look at me and say what he said is another example of how he lives his life and acts. He doesn't go away. He puts in time to fix it and fix it he did.”
Richardson made his 838th career start against the Pistons. He made 3 of 5 three-point attempts and finished with 14 points. After the game, Richardson confirmed that he had the conversation Brown had shared.
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“I had to make sure of that,” Richardson said of Brown not feeling he had to start the veteran. “I haven't been playing well. That is no secret. I had to let him know that I felt there were other guys that were playing better than me. I am the type of player who wants whatever is best for the team. That has always been me.”
Sixers host family of slain officer
Richardson displayed his caring nature in another way Wednesday, too. The Sixers invited the family of Philadelphia police officer Robert Wilson III to be their guests at the Pistons game.
Wilson was the 30-year-old officer killed on March 5 at a North Philadelphia GameStop. Wilson had stopped to buy his 10-year-old son, Quahmier, a gift. While he was shopping, two gunmen attempted to rob the store. Wilson died protecting everyone else who, like him, were in the wrong place at the wrong time.
“I was raised by a police officer,” Richardson said. “My uncle was a police officer. He is retired now. I know every day the job they do. They put their life on the line.
“What Officer Wilson did was heroic. He saved a lot of lives in that store that night. We wanted to tell his family, especially his son, your dad was a hero, and we thank him for that. We wanted him to feel comfortable. I introduced him to all the guys. I brought him into the locker room, and we just wanted him to enjoy being here.”
“I too met Officer Wilson's son,” Brown said. “You take a big gulp. He was all wide-eyed and happy to be here. To see him interact with our team and the team with him, that is a heartfelt moment.”
Quahmier and his one-year-old brother were attending their first-ever Sixers game. It has happened only 16 times this year, but they got to see the home team win.
“I said we were going to go out and try to get the win for you, and make this a night you will remember,” Richardson said. “We wanted to try and ease the pain a little bit.”
It was the second time the team honored the slain officer. On March 8, the Sixers wore t-shirts with Officer Wilson's name on it during pregame warm-ups.